The present invention relates to a frame for framing pictures and being composed of a plurality of frame sections.
It is well-known to manufacture picture frames from extruded aluminum sections which are mitred in suitable lengths and arranged around the picture e element, whereupon the members are assembled into a whole frame by means of corner brackets, and clip bodies, typically in the form of leaf springs, are disposed between the supporting lip and the picture element back to fix the latter to the frame. Such picture frames are distinguished by rapid assembly and a relatively nice appearance while being very robust.
Picture frames of this type a re suitable for picture elements composed of several different layers, such as an external layer of glass and a picture surface located behind it and supported by a rigid panel, but are normally not used in case of pictures on frame-mounted canvas. Simultaneous with the framing, the layered picture elements must be fixed in the frame.
German patent publication No. DT 24 47 041 B2 describes a frame of the above type in which the screen wall stands upright from the visible front surface of the frame section and in which the supporting lip is a loose element that can be arranged at two different distances from the holding lip to accommodate the actual thickness of the picture element. The screen wall is manufactured quite conventionally with a depth corresponding to the thickness of the picture element so that the picture flushes with the lowest part of the stepped front surface of the frame section when the picture element comprises glass, mat, picture and backing. Paintings are also known which are painted on canvas on a blind frame, the surrounding frame being at a distance from the edge of the painting. EP 0 367 129 A2 describes a picture kept at a distance from a frame by means of four stiffeners mounted between the corners of the picture and the frame, respectively.